Bird Checklist
for Augusta County, Virginia


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Birds of Augusta County book cover

For complete information on the occurrence of bird species in our area, see the brand-new third edition of Birds of Augusta County, edited by YuLee Larner. The first edition was published in 1988, and the second edition came out in 1998. This 116-page book is a comprehensive reference, serving as an invaluable tool for casual bird watchers and serious conservationists alike. Since the last edition, 898 sightings that "broke the book" have been compiled by YuLee, of which the most recent was the Painted bunting near Verona. Copies of the book will be on sale at the regular meetings of the Augusta Bird Club, or you may contact YuLee Larner or Mary Vermeulen to purchase a copy. Please make your check for $15.75 (tax included) payable to "Augusta Bird Club Book Account."

NOTE: This table is based on the latest (2008) edition of Birds of Augusta County, and has been updated to conform to the current classification and naming system of the American Ornithological Union. It also includes three new species.
(FONT SIZE IN THE TABLE HAS BEEN REDUCED TO 10 PX TEMPORARILY!) The Printable version, with bargraphs showing relative abundance, has not yet been updated.
(Portable Document Format / PDF, requires Adobe Reader software.)

Symbols and abbreviations appear at the end of the list.

  Cat. * Species s S F W
     Fulvous Whistling-Duck     a a
     Greater White-fronted Goose a   a a
     Snow Goose a   R R
     Ross's Goose a     a
     Brant     a a
  3  Barnacle Goose a      
     Cackling Goose R   R R
     *Canada Goose C C C C
  5  Mute Swan   a a a
  4  Trumpeter Swan       a
     Tundra Swan U   U U
     *Wood Duck C C C U
     Gadwall U a U U
     American Wigeon U   U U
     American Black Duck U a U U
     *Mallard C C C C
     Blue-winged Teal C a C R
     Cinnamon Teal a      
     Northern Shoveler U a U U
     Northern Pintail U   U U
     Green-winged Teal U   U U
     Canvasback U   U R
     Redhead R   R R
     Ring-necked Duck C   C U
     Greater Scaup R   R R
     Lesser Scaup U   U U
     Surf Scoter     a a
     White-winged Scoter a   a a
     Black Scoter       a
     Long-tailed Duck R   R R
     Bufflehead U   U U
     Common Goldeneye R   R R
     Hooded Merganser U a U U
     Common Merganser a   a a
     Red-breasted Merganser U a U U
     Ruddy Duck U a U R
  6  *Ring-necked Pheasant R R R R
     *Ruffed Grouse U U U U
     *Wild Turkey U U U U
     *Northern Bobwhite U U U U
     Red-throated Loon a   a a
     Common Loon R a R R
     #Pied-billed Grebe C R C U
     Horned Grebe U   U R
     Red-necked Grebe R     R
     Eared Grebe     a  
     American Flamingo     a  
     Black-capped Petrel     a  
     White-tailed Tropicbird     a  
     Wood Stork     a  
     Double-crested Cormorant R R R  
     Anhinga     a  
     American White Pelican     a  
     American Bittern R   a a
     Least Bittern   a a  
     Great Blue Heron U U U U
     Great Egret R U U a
     Snowy Egret a a a  
     Little Blue Heron a a a  
     Tricolored Heron     a  
     Cattle Egret R a R  
     *Green Heron C C C a
     Black-crowned Night-Heron R R R R
     Yellow-crowned Night-Heron R R R  
     White Ibis   a a  
     Glossy Ibis a   a  
     Roseate Spoonbill (NEW)   a    
     *Black Vulture U U U U
     *Turkey Vulture C C C C
     Osprey U R U a
     Swallow-tailed Kite     a  
     Mississippi Kite a a a  
     Bald Eagle R R R R
     Northern Harrier U a U U
     *Sharp-shinned Hawk U U C U
     *Cooper's Hawk U U C U
     Northern Goshawk a   R a
     *Red-shouldered Hawk U a U U
     *Broad-winged Hawk C U A  
  3 ?  Swainson's Hawk     a  
     *Red-tailed Hawk C C C C
     Rough-legged Hawk a   R R
     Golden Eagle R   R R
     *American Kestrel C U C C
     Merlin R   R R
     Peregrine Falcon a   R a
     Virginia Rail a   a  
     #Sora U R U a
     Common Moorhen R a    
     American Coot C a C U
     Sandhill Crane a a a  
     Black-bellied Plover R   R  
     American Golden-Plover a   R  
     Semipalmated Plover U R U  
     Lesser Sand Plover (NEW)     a  
     *Killdeer C C C C
     American Avocet a   a  
     #Spotted Sandpiper U R U  
     Solitary Sandpiper U R U  
     Greater Yellowlegs U R U a
     Willet a a a  
     Lesser Yellowlegs U R U  
     Upland Sandpiper a a a  
     Whimbrel a      
     Ruddy Turnstone a   a  
     Red Knot a      
     Sanderling a   a  
     Semipalmated Sandpiper U R U  
     Western Sandpiper   a a  
     Least Sandpiper U R U  
     White-rumped Sandpiper R a a  
     Baird's Sandpiper     a  
     Pectoral Sandpiper U R U a
     Dunlin U a U a
     Stilt Sandpiper   a a  
     Buff-breasted Sandpiper (NEW) a      
     Ruff a      
     Short-billed Dowitcher U a U  
     Long-billed Dowitcher     a  
     Wilson's Snipe U a U U
     *American Woodcock U a a a
     Wilson's Phalarope a a a  
     Red-necked Phalarope a   a  
     Red Phalarope     a  
     Bonaparte's Gull U   R R
     Laughing Gull a   a  
     Ring-billed Gull U   U U
     Herring Gull R   R a
     Least Tern     a  
     Caspian Tern R   a  
     Black Tern R a R  
     Common Tern R   R  
     Forster's Tern R a R a
    Black Skimmer     a  
  5  *Rock Pigeon C C C C
  5  Eurasian Collared-Dove a      
     *Mourning Dove C C C C
     Common Ground-Dove     a  
     *Yellow-billed Cuckoo C C C  
     *Black-billed Cuckoo R R R  
     *Barn Owl U U U U
     *Eastern Screech-Owl C C C C
     *Great Horned Owl U U U U
     Snowy Owl a     a
     *Barred Owl U U U U
     Long-eared Owl       a
     Short-eared Owl a   a R
     Northern Saw-whet Owl a     a
     *Common Nighthawk C U C  
     #Chuck-will's-widow R R R  
     *Eastern Whip-poor-will C C C  
     *Chimney Swift C C C  
     *Ruby-throated Hummingbird C C C  
     Rufous Hummingbird     a a
     *Belted Kingfisher C C C C
     *Red-headed Woodpecker R R R R
     *Red-bellied Woodpecker C C C C
     Yellow-bellied Sapsucker C a C C
     *Downy Woodpecker C C C C
     *Hairy Woodpecker U U U U
     *Northern Flicker C C C U
     *Pileated Woodpecker U U U U
     Olive-sided Flycatcher R   R  
     *Eastern Wood-Pewee C C C  
     Yellow-bellied Flycatcher a a R  
     *Acadian Flycatcher C C C  
     Alder Flycatcher   a    
     *Willow Flycatcher U U U  
     Least Flycatcher R a a  
     *Eastern Phoebe C C C U
     *Great Crested Flycatcher C C C  
     Western Kingbird   a    
     *Eastern Kingbird C C C  
     Scissor-tailed Flycatcher   a    
     #Loggerhead Shrike U R U U
     *White-eyed Vireo U U U a
     *Yellow-throated Vireo U U U  
     *Blue-headed Vireo U U U a
     *Warbling Vireo U U U  
     Philadelphia Vireo a   R  
     *Red-eyed Vireo C C C  
     *Blue Jay C C C C
     *American Crow C C C C
     *Fish Crow U U U U
     *Common Raven U U U U
     *Horned Lark U U U U
     *Purple Martin C C C  
     *Tree Swallow C C C  
     *Northern Rough-winged Swallow C C C  
     #Bank Swallow U R U  
     *Cliff Swallow U U U  
  3 ?  Cave Swallow     a  
     *Barn Swallow A A A  
     *Carolina Chickadee C C C C
     *Black-capped Chickadee U U U U
     *Tufted Titmouse C C C C
     Red-breasted Nuthatch U a U U
     *White-breasted Nuthatch C C C C
     Brown-headed Nuthatch a a a a
     Brown Creeper U a U U
     *Carolina Wren C C C C
     Bewick's Wren R R R  
     *House Wren C C C a
     Winter Wren U R U U
     Sedge Wren   a a  
     Marsh Wren a   R a
     *Blue-gray Gnatcatcher C C C  
     Golden-crowned Kinglet U a U U
     Ruby-crowned Kinglet C a C U
     *Eastern Bluebird C C C U
     #Veery U R U  
     Gray-cheeked Thrush R   R  
     Swainson's Thrush U a U a
     Hermit Thrush U   U R
     *Wood Thrush C C C  
     *American Robin A A A U
     *Gray Catbird C C C R
     *Northern Mockingbird C C C C
     *Brown Thrasher C C C R
  5  *European Starling A A A A
     American Pipit U   U U
     *Cedar Waxwing C U C U
     Lapland Longspur a   a a
     Snow Bunting a   a R
     Bachman's Warbler   a    
     #Blue-winged Warbler R R R  
     #Golden-winged Warbler R R R  
     Tennessee Warbler U   U  
     Orange-crowned Warbler a   a  
     Nashville Warbler U a U a
     *Northern Parula C C C  
     *Yellow Warbler C C C  
     *Chestnut-sided Warbler C C C  
     Magnolia Warbler C a C  
     Cape May Warbler C   C a
     *Black-throated Blue Warbler C C C  
     Yellow-rumped Warbler C a C U
     *Black-throated Green Warbler C C C  
     *Blackburnian Warbler U U U  
     Yellow-throated Warbler a   a  
     *Pine Warbler U U U a
     *Prairie Warbler C C U  
     Palm Warbler U   U R
     Bay-breasted Warbler U   U  
     Blackpoll Warbler U a U  
     *Cerulean Warbler U R U  
     *Black-and-white Warbler C C C a
     *American Redstart C C C  
     Prothonotary Warbler R   a  
     *Worm-eating Warbler C C C  
     Swainson's Warbler a      
     *Ovenbird C C C  
     Northern Waterthrush U   U  
     *Louisiana Waterthrush C C C  
     *Kentucky Warbler U U U  
     Connecticut Warbler a   R  
     #Mourning Warbler R R R  
     *Common Yellowthroat C C C a
     *Hooded Warbler C C C  
     Wilson's Warbler U   U  
     *Canada Warbler C R R  
     *Yellow-breasted Chat C C C  
     *Eastern Towhee C C C U
  4 ?  Bachman's Sparrow a      
     American Tree Sparrow U   U U
     *Chipping Sparrow C C C R
     Clay-colored Sparrow a a a a
     *Field Sparrow C C C U
     *Vesper Sparrow U U U R
     Lark Sparrow a   a a
     *Savannah Sparrow C U C U
     *Grasshopper Sparrow C C C  
     Henslow's Sparrow     a  
     Le Conte's Sparrow     a  
     Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow     a  
     Fox Sparrow C   C U
     *Song Sparrow A A A A
     Lincoln's Sparrow R   R a
     Swamp Sparrow U   U R
     White-throated Sparrow C a C C
     Harris's Sparrow a      
     White-crowned Sparrow C a C C
     #Dark-eyed Junco C U C C
     Summer Tanager R a a  
     *Scarlet Tanager C C C  
    Western Tanager a      
     *Northern Cardinal C C C C
     *Rose-breasted Grosbeak U U U a
     Black-headed Grosbeak a      
     *Blue Grosbeak U U U  
     *Indigo Bunting A A A a
     Painted Bunting a      
     #Dickcissel R R a R
     #Bobolink U R U  
     *Red-winged Blackbird A A A U
     *Eastern Meadowlark C C C U
     Yellow-headed Blackbird a      
     Rusty Blackbird U   U R
     Brewer's Blackbird a   a a
     *Common Grackle A A A C
     *Brown-headed Cowbird A A A C
     *Orchard Oriole U U U  
     *Baltimore Oriole C C C a
     Purple Finch U   U U
  5  *House Finch A A A A
     Red Crossbill R R R R
     White-winged Crossbill a   a a
     Common Redpoll R   a R
     Pine Siskin U a U U
     *American Goldfinch C C C C
     Evening Grosbeak U a U U
  5  *House Sparrow A A A A
Explanation:

* Categories (based on criteria set by VARCOM):
1 = Confirmed as occurring in Virginia, based on physical evidence.
2 = Confirmed as occurring in Virginia, based on written documentation.
3 = Identity accepted, but of uncertain provenance.
4 = Historical records that no longer meet current standards.
5 = Introduced species that have become self-sustaining.
6 = Introduced species that have been extirpated.
NOTE: In the table above, only Categories 3 - 6 are indicated.

Seasons:
s = Spring (March - May)
S = Summer (June - July)
F = Fall (August - November)
W = Winter (December - February)

Relative abundance:
A = Abundant - likely in large numbers in proper habitat.
C = Common - seen most of the time or in small numbers in proper habitat/season.
U = Uncommon - occurs in small numbers or in limited habitat
R = Rare - occurs irregularly in small numbers.
a = Accidental - no more than five records in the given season.
* = Breeds locally - some breeding evidence, not necessarily a nest record.
# = Rare and local breeding, not necessarily a nest record.
Italics indicate a species accidental to the area.

Augusta Bird Club © 2012

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